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(No Model.) 7 J. M. v. LE- BEAU. CORSET CLASP. I No. 409,410. PatentedAuguZO, 1889.

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M JIM H ATTORNEYS. V V

Improved Corset-Clasp,

ilwrrnn States tartar Orricn.

JOHN M. V. LE BEAU, OF NEW ORLE ANS, LOUISLANA, ASSIGNOR OF ONECORSET-CLASP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 409,410, dated August20, 1889.

Application filed July 6, 1888. Serial No. 279,200. (No model.)

To all whom may concern.-

ie it known that 1, JOHN M. V. LE BEAU, of New Orleans, in the parish ofOrleans and State of Louisiana, have invented a new and of which thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to corset clasps or fastenings, and has foritsobject to provide a simple, inexpensive, apd efficient clasp of thischaracter, which maybe readily fastened and' unfastened while putting onand removing the corset, and will not become unfastened accidentally bysidewise or longitudinal strains, to which clasps of this kind areordinarily subjected.

The invention consists in certain novel features of construction andcombinations of parts of the corset-clasp, all as hereinafter describedand claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar letters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure l is a face view of a corset-clasp made in accordance with myinvention, and

, portions of the corset to which the busks are attached. Fig. 2 is adetail reverse side or face view of the central portion of the clasp;and Fig. 3 is a perspective view, which shows parts of the two busks anda slightly-modified form of one of thefastening devices.

' The herein-described corset-clasp consists of two spring-steel orelastic busks A 13, a

3 per fastening lower fastening device G, and a series of updevices D,of which there may be any required number, three being shown in thedrawings. All of the fastenings C D are held to the face of the busk A,and en gage headed pins or buttons E, which are fixed to the bnsk B tolock or clasp the corset F to the body of the wearer, as presentlyexplained.

I more particularly describe the clasp-fastenings C D, as follows: Thelower fastening O is made with two main parts or jaws G H, the formerbeing fixed to the busk A by two rivets g g or otherwise, so as tobeiminovablc on the busk. The movable jaw ll of this fastening ispivoted to the bush by a pin or rivet 71 and between theedgewisereccssed inner parts of the jaws G II is held, by a pin or rivet'2', a spring 1, preferably made of a bent metal plate or wire andacting normally to close the jaw ii to the jaw or part G of thefastening. In this jaw G, at its outer part and upper edge, is formed a.notch or slot c, with which the corresponding button E on the busk l3engages when the corset-clasp is locked.

The extremities of the outer parts of both jaws G ll, which overlap thebush 1 are curved inward toward their joint with each other,thus causingthe button E to automatically open the jaws of the fastening when it ispushed against the outer ends of the jaws, and when the jaw ll. opensaway from the fixed jaw G the pin or button slips into the notch c, andthe spring then instantly closes the jaws and the fastening is locked.The movable jaw ii is bent at its back end over the outer edge and intothe back of the busk A to form a prong or lip at 7b, substantially likethe bent-over lips 7t 7t on the back ends of the two hinged jaws K K,forming the main parts of one of the upper clasp-fastenings D, which Iwill next describe.

Each of the fastenings D is made with two movable jaws K K, pivoted tothe busk A, on the same pin it, and fitted, like the fastening O, with aspring I, which normally closes the jaws, which have outer curvedextremities, causing them to open automatically as an opposing pin orbutton E on the busk B is pushed against their ends, and the lower jaw Kof each fastening D is provided, like the lower jaw G of the fasteningO,with a notch 0, into which the pin or button E slips prior to theclosing of the jaws K K by their spring I, as will readily beunderstood.

he guide-lip h on the jaw ll of the fastening C, anualso the lips 7t onthe jaws K of the lower fastening D, work in a notch a, the inner wallof which describes an are. or portion of a circle having the pivot ofthe movable jaws H K as centers, and this construction assures theconstant engagement of these lips with the bush A and free movement ofthe lips as the jaws open avoids extension or projection of the jawsinward beyond the inner edge of the busk.

and close, and

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g in a notch a, cut into ing at their adjacent straight longitudinalbusk, the lip edges and beveled or inclined inwardly at their outerends, one of said straightcontacting edges being notched, as at e, andthe stud, whereby the stud may be released by moving it out of the notchand against the adjacent straight edge of the other jaw, or moving thefastener bodilyin the opposite direetion,sub-

The modification represented in Fig. 3 of stantially as set forth.

he drawings shows how a metal keeper L 2. he combination, with the bushB, havmay be fastened at its ends to the bus A so ing studs E, of thebush A,havingfastenings as to overlap the back ends of the movableconsisting beveled or of spring-pressed jaws jaws of the fastenings. Theguides or keeprounded at their outer ends toward their ers h 7t" L havethe same object, which is to meeting edges to guide said studs, thelower prevent rocking of the fasteningaws on or jaw of one fasteningbeing relatively fixed,

across the bush A or both busks A B; or, in the notches e in the upperedges of the sevother words, the guides, in connection with eral lowerjaws, the lower edges of the upper the pivots of the movable jaws, holdthem flat jaws being plain or straight, whereby the ant securely to thestuds will open the jaws by pressing against that they cannot easily betwisted from the the ends thereof, substantially as set forth.

A corset-clasp comprising two busks, one

a series of fastenings having inner aces of the movable jaws of thefastenings slots a in the buskA forengagementwith theback thereof,

as is shown at the two upper fastenings Din drawings.

It will be noticed that as the lower jaw of movable or spring-actuatedjaws, and the one of the corset-fastenings (preferably the other havinga series of pins or buttons lower fastening is fixed it will not allowthe adapted for engagement with the fastenings,

pin E on the bush ll, which engages it, to force this fastening open bystrains brought upon the clasp by downward-hending move ments of thewearer of the corset; hence it will be quite impossible for the corsetto be come unfastened accidentally when in use.

To fasten the clasp, it is only necessary to press the pins or buttons Eagainst the ends of the jaws of the fastenings C D to open them andadmit the pins E to theirnotehes c, and the corset may be easily andalmost instantly taken off the wearer by moving the busks A ll endwisein reverse directions, (indicated by the arrows in Fig. 1 of thedrawings,) which will open the jaws and release and the movable ing lipsor guides which are hooked around at the back of the bush to whichtheyare attached, the bush having curved surfaces at the points wherethe lips hook around it, substantiall y as herein set forth.

, n a corsetelasp, the combination, with a busk A, of a fasteningcomprising a fixed jaw G, having a notch e in its upper edge, a movablejaw II, a spring closing said jaw, a series of fastenings comprising twomovable spring-actuated jaws K K, the lower ones having notches e, and abusk 13, provided with series of pins or buttons E, adapted to enter thenotches e of the fastenings, subthe pins E from their notches e, as willreadstantially as described, for the purposes set ilybe understood.forth. I

Having thus described my invention, what 7 T f 1 7) claim as new, anddesire to secure by Let JOHA LE BEAU ters Patent, is- \Vitn esses:

l. Aeorset-fasteni ngcom prising two spri ng- HYP. GARROT, operated jawsin vertical alignment, contact- S. S. JONES.

jaws of the fastenings hav-

